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President Obama's Administration, with only opposition from the Republicans, has steadily helped put more than 11 million Americans back to work in the private sector. In the strongest period of American manufacturing job growth since the 1990s, the sector has added more than 750,000 jobs since February 2010. As New York Times columnist Paul Krugman notes, the economy is "now adding jobs at a rate not seen since the Clinton years." The dollar is on its fastest rise in 40 years; its value has increased 14 percent in this first quarter alone and it's the strongest it's been in 12 years compared to the Euro. Maybe most important, the number of long-term unemployed is down by 1.1 million. Why are the Republicans so silent about the good news?

Gregg Jacobs is an insomnia specialist at the Sleep Disorders Center at the UMass Memorial Medical Center and the author of Say Good Night to Insomnia. In answer to my questions, he shared his insights on how human sleep patterns have changed over time, healthier and more effective alternatives to sleeping pills, and how to reverse our worst sleep habits and behaviors.

What can we do to revitalize the smaller cities and towns in America, and give Americans a choice about what type of place they can call home? This is not the first time in American history we have had a problem with parts of the country being left behind. We should revisit some of the policies that worked before.

Over the five years that I was incarcerated, I felt confused and often dehumanized. After dropping out of my gang, life became a daily struggle to survive. In no way was my incarceration an environment of rehabilitation. In fact, some even called our facility "gladiator school," because of the harsh treatments we faced daily.

When I visited the Sivile Primary School in South Africa's Western Cape, I was struck by a feeling. It was a feeling of the vulnerability of the children all around me, who are put at huge risk every single day.

The threats emanating from Yemen are distorted and exaggerated, the stakes are actually relatively low (except for Yemenis), any imposed settlement is highly elusive and the costs to those engaged may be high. For the U.S., it can be once again something of a lose-lose situation where the enemy of my enemy is often also my enemy.

On the day he would have turned 88, members of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors will enter an epic battle by farm workers seeking implementation of their union contract against a giant Central Valley grower -- reminiscent of 1960s farm labor fights.

By allowing the pursuit of money to guide our educational practices, we have miseducated everyone. But there is an alternative. Some of the most intractable problems in schools could be solved if we replaced money with a different goal, one that would be good for all children, both now and in their futures -- the goal of well-being.

In the Arkansas of my growing up, not only was smart good, but the prevailing philosophy was always to do the right thing, to show other people dignity, and to honor the common man. I'm sad to say that those days are gone. In today's Arkansas, we can't recognize a lie when it's spoon-fed to us, and we don't want to help anyone who isn't as white-bread as we are.

The Indiana Religious Freedom Restoration Act, signed by Governor Mike Pence last week, is one of the most biased pieces of state legislation we've seen in our modern era. The fact that it is cloaked in the name of religious freedom is particularly offensive to me as a member of the clergy who has been engaged in ministry and social justice work my entire life.

Much of the opposition to Mars exploration is based on disinformation and distraction tactics that imply or even claim outright that Mars would bust the budget or endanger Social Security, which, given actual budgetary facts and context, is preposterous.

I would not be here today if it wasn't for the free, quality health care I was given in the form of Medicaid. I support the ACA and I advocate for a single payer national health insurance system. This is what we all need in order to be a society in which our ideals are realized rather than sold off. We can't go backwards, there's just too much at stake.

It was exactly a year ago when I allowed myself to be fully seen by the world as the woman that I am: a proud transgender female. For a long time, I was paralyzed by fear in accepting my truth. I finally decided that I could not be paralyzed anymore. I realized that to accept vulnerability is to allow your authenticity to shine.

Regardless of how you define it, we can agree that these familial connections exist in today's politics -- a 2016 presidential race between Hillary Clinton and Jeb Bush is very possible. How do you start building your political dynasty? Unfortunately, someone has to do the hard work and pave the road to a political office.

The advantage of the notorious cover of Der Spiegel that showed Angela Merkel in front of the Acropolis surrounded by Nazi officers is that it finally poses, in a way that cannot be dodged, the question of Germanophobia in Europe.

While we support a constitutional amendment to restore the authority of Congress, state and local governments to regulate campaign spending, it's a long-term fight. But there is another way dilute big money's influence.

Call it an irony, if you will, but as the Obama administration struggles to slow down or halt its scheduled withdrawal from Afghanistan, newly elected Afghan President Ashraf Ghani is performing a withdrawal operation of his own.

Almost two out of three younger Republicans say every adult woman should have access to affordable, effective birth control. Why do they say that? Because they realize that birth control allows people to build families when they're ready, financially and emotionally.

Every day, men and women are released from prisons and jails across the U.S. after taking this same journey. Most incarcerated settings do not provide programs that teach relevant job skills for reentry to society. As a result, recidivism -- the rate at which people return to incarceration -- is enormous. Society blames these individuals for their failure. Had I not been fortunate enough to be a founding member of a program called The Last Mile, I too could have ended up back in prison.

It is easy to choose happiness when we are sitting on the peaks of our lives. But what about when we are lost in the valleys? On those days when we find it hard to put one foot in front of the other, we are tested to go deep.

Late Thursday night, after hearing of Harry Reid's plans to retire from elected office, Dick Durbin went to Chuck Schumer and told him that in order to prevent a divisive, distracting battle, he would not challenge Schumer for the leader position and would instead run again for his post of Democratic whip. That was classic Durbin.

This Sunday, you won't be serving just any old brunch. (It is Easter, after all.) So may we suggest adding these ten dishes to your spread? Serve them with a few pitchers of Bloody Marys and your family and friends will be singing your praises.